Go Vote

Thank goodness that all of these obnoxious political ads are about to come to an end. Only a few ore days of hearing about the evils of Barack Obama. Sorry John. I'm not buying it. I have heard far too many things coming out of Obama's mouth to believe all the nasty half truths coming out of McCain's camp. I haven't heard anything about how McCain is going to help me other than letting the rich keep getting richer off of the goods and services that my family needs to survive. I don't mean I want small businesses to be overly taxed so that I can save on health care, gas, and food. I mean that the companies that are making billions selling the products I need should be put into check a bit. For example, the financial companies that we are bailing out are still paying out millions of dollars in bonuses to the people that fucked up the economy. That should not be happening. Medical companies ignore some deadly diseases because they are not profitable enough to cure. That is bullshit. Gas companies are posting record earnings while I can only put a half tank of gas into my car. I'm just glad I don't need to drive to work anymore. My meager money would become even more meager. Well, in that nut shell, I am planning on voting for Obama.

I am also voting to pass the Hilliard school levy, and probably voting for the casino in Ohio. The ads of the casino are confusing because they contradict each other. One side say that the casino owner could pay no taxes, the other side say that plenty of money will go to Ohio. My friend Jesse put it into perspective for me though. Honda has a factory in Ohio. Those profits go to Japanese companies. Why would it be so bad for a casino, creating thousands of Ohio jobs, to send its earnings out of state? Ohio is still going to get its $20mil out of the deal. Plus I doubt that law makers would propose a law that would screw the state. There has to be some checks and balances put in so that Ohio doesn't get screwed. Besides, the main sponsor for the ads against the casino are Indiana casinos. They don't want all that Ohio money they earn staying in Ohio. I know that, if the Ohio casino has poker, I probably won't go to the Indiana casinos at all.

What the Hell am I Supposed to do Tomorrow?

It looks like Ohio State has a bye week tomorrow. I hate bye weeks. I guess it is not too bad, considering the heart breaker last week. I guess there are still some good games tomorrow to keep me occupied. I guess I will have to pay attention to my kids or something. I guess there's always my Xbox!

I Screwed a Prostitute Yesterday

Did that get your attention? Well, it's true. Twice. Ok, ok.....it was in Fable 2, the latest game I am obsessed with. I lost some of my character's goodness, and risked my character getting some VD, but thought that the option of hookers in a game was hilarious. Seriously though, if you like games that you can get lost in all day, Fable 2 is GREAT. GREAT. GREAT!!!! Not only are there the main quests that get you through the game, there are side quests that make the game more interesting. Plus, unlike some games where, if you kill bad guys then the area is clear for the rest of the game, bad guys keep popping up from time to time when you are walking through the landscape. There are also fun treasues all over the place. GOSH I LOVE THIS GAME!!!!!

I think I need to get Showtime

I have been watching a lot of shows that have been on Showtime lately. I thought that HBO had the corner on great shows with the Sopranos, butit turns out that Showtime has some really good stuff too.

I started watching Dexter online though NetFlix. It is about a serial killer, named Dexter, who also works for the police and a CSI type guy. He is kind of like a vigilante in that he only kills people that he knows are bad guys. It sounds a bit out there, but it is a really good show.

I then decided to give Californication a try. This one stars David Ducovney of X-Files fame as a writer that moved to LA and is now a sex fiend. It is pretty good too. He hooks up with this really hot girl in the first episode only to find out that she is the 16 year old daughter of his ex-wife's new boyfriend. Oops. It's a funny show.

This weekend, I started watching Weeds online, also though NetFlix. It is about a suburban housewife whose husband dies. In order to support her family, she starts selling pot in her neighborhood and around town. I think I am addicted to this show now. It is kind of funny, kind of crazy, and definately good.

All three of these shows are on Showtime. HBO is OK still and we watch Trueblood on it, so I guess in order to keep my satellite bill the same, I need to drop Cinimax and order Showtime. Sure, I will miss the soft porm on 'Skinimax', but that's OK. :-)

Fuck

OSU lost. They had the game won, fumbled the ball, and lost. Fuck.

Oh yeah, and I'm older now. Fuck.

Big Game Tonight

Ok, the biggest game of the year to date. #3 Penn State is invading the Horseshoe tonight. ESPN's Game Day will be there and this is shaping up to be the game of the week around the nation. I'm not too sure how I feel about this game. It should be close either way. Both teams match up pretty well with great defenses, good running games, and mobile quarterbacks. Penn State might have the edge in the passing game unless Ohio State switches Boeckman in and out of the game. I guess Pryor is doing fairly well passing, but he is still a bit tennative and takes too much time trying to find a reciever. Kick off is at 8:00 tonight.

There are more big games today. #8 Texas Tech vs #23 Kansas, #6 Oklahoma vs #1 Texas, #7 Georgia vs #13 LSU, #2 Alabama vs Tennessee, Kentucky vs #10 Florida. Let's just say that, if a bunch of underdogs win today, Ohio State could be back in the National Title hunt. I'm not sure if that is a good thing, since the whole country (except for Ohio) would hate Ohio State back in the National Title hunt. Still, six teams ranked ahead of Ohio State could potentially lose today. Still, we need to take care of business tonight before looking ahead to bowl games.

Go bucks!

Fable 2

I posted about Fable way back in the day. It is a quest type game where you go around killing bad guys with a sword, crossbow, and magic. I really loved Fable. I played it through three or four times. You can play it to be a good guy or a bad guy and the story changes depending on your choices. TONS of fun. Anyway, Fable 2 is out now for the Xbox 360. I bought it and am loving it just as much. I can play it all day and not notice the time fly by. Though the game is pretty the same as the old version, there are some neat changes.

1. you get a doggie. In the old game, there were treasures buried and hidden all over the place. the same is true in Fable 2, but instead of hunting for the trinkets yourself, you have a dog that sniffs things out for you. It also helps you fight.

2. The game is set 500 years after Fable. Most of the magic is gone from the land and technology is creeping in. Aside from bows and crossbows, you can buy pistols and muskets. I haven't used one yet though because I have a good crossbow that works well.

3. You can get married in both games, but in Fable 2, you can also have kids and go to whores. I think it is funny. If you go to a whore, you could catch a disease, so of course, they provide condoms too. What a great game! I haven't found a whore yet, but since I am playing as a good guy I don't want to partake in the hookers. It might make my good guy status decrease.

4. One negative change is that there are alot more things that your character can do. It sounds good, but in the old game you could assign spells and actions to buttons. In Fable 2, you can access all sorts of things, but you have to press the right bumper botton, select what you want, and then your action takes place. It sucks in a fight when you want to use a specific spell and are hindered by the lack of speed and ease.

All in all, Fable 2 is a load of fun. If you like this sort of game, I highly recommend it.

Plenty o' Posts

I keep thinking of things to post in the evening, but then forget what I want to post about. I think I thought of three things last night, but can only remember one. That's OK though. It is a pretty involved subject. I think....

True Blood is now playing on HBO. You may think, "A TV show, Eric? Not very involved...." When I saw the trailers, I didn't think much about it and doubted I would like it very much. Jessica is really into vampire stories though, so we watched it. Now, I think I am going to call this one of my favorite shows to watch. Of course, BSG, Doctor Who, and some of my other favorite shows are off the air at the moment, so I may just be filling in the void.

True Blood isn't like your every day vampire story. It has some of the same weaknesses and similarities to other vampire stories. Sunlight, fire, and stakes through the heart can kill them. However, they have reflections, no fear of crosses or garlic, and in this story they have come out of the vampire closet, so to speak. They live in the open. True Blood is what they call synthetic blood so they don't need to eat people all the time. This show really has alot of interesting aspects. The main character, Sookie (I know, right?) is able to read people's minds and she falls for a vampire named Bill. Apparently, she can't read vampire minds, so that is a big turn on for her. There are prejudices between vamps and people and a killer on the loose to add to the drama. It's quite interesting. I recommend True Blood if you have the chance to see it.

I almost called this post "I Saw Rogue's Boobies." Anna Paquin plays 'Sookie'. For those of you that remember, she was Rogue in the X-Men movies. She isn't exactly who I would have cast in the roll of the (in my opinion) the hottest X-Man. I had a huge teen-comicbook-fan crush on Rogue in my teen years. My teen-comicbook-fan crush list went Kitty Pryde, Gen 13, Rogue, Mystique, and Jean Grey. If I put them in order, I would make Mystique #1 because she can change her shape. Want a badonkadonk butt? She can do that. Anyway, understanding that I had a teen comicbook crush on Rogue, when Anna Paquin showed her boobies on True Blood, it was interesting for me. There was nothing spectacular about them, other than the teen perve inside me thinking to myself, "I just saw Rogue's boobies!" It was actually a bit suprising to me because I didn't think Anna Paquin would do a nude scene. She was always a bit innocent in anyother films I had seen her in.

New Ball

I went out and ordered myself a new bowling ball yesterday. It was a bit pricey, but there is a mail in rebate for a $100 gas card. You better believe I'm sending that in ASAP. It is called a Brunswick Twisted Fury Solid. I didn't get it online though, because I don't trust them to drill it correctly. I could buy it online and have it drilled at the pro shop, but they usually charge $50 to drill an online ball. They would prefer that you buy the ball in house, which is what I did. I pick it up tonight. I would rather have picked it up yesterday, but they were sold out of the ball I wanted. Plus, for some reason, most people get 15 pound balls rather than 16 pounders. I prefer 16 pound balls. Otherwise I roll the ball too hard. Hopfully, it works out well for me.

Sad Game

Jessica and I went to watch Ohio State look pathetic as if chalked up a win against Perdue. It was a good time, but a boring game. The only touchdown scored was when OSU blocked a punt and returned it for the score. Other than that, Ohio State scored three field goals and Perdue one field goal. With the running talent on the field of Pryor and Wells, there is no way that the Buckeyes shouldn't have run all over the worst defense in the Big Ten. The only thing to hang their hat on is that the Buckeyes defense was pretty impressive, holding Perdue to only three points. I had the best seats of my OSU watching career. We were in B deck, so we were out of the sun for the whole game. Plus there were TVs there so we could see replays and catch other scores from the games around the country. Toledo beat Michigan? Seriously??? hehe.

We took the kids with us, along with my parents, and we all watched the Skull Session. It is the pre-game warn up of the Ohio State Marching Band. the kids seemed to like it. We got there late, so we had to take seats way up in the nose bleed section. I was a little irritated. My parents used to go to every Skull Session when I was in the band. I felt that they should have remembered that we would need to get there sooner to guarantee good seats. Oh well. The kids also got to meet Brutus the Buckeye and hit a bass drum.

A Broken Record

I am repeating post. Well, kinda. Revisiting topics, I guess.

- Another good week of bowling. As previously mentioned, my team has been undefeated so far this season. There is still a long way to go though. Last night we bowled out nemisises (plural nemisis...nemisees?) a team that always takes us to the wood shed. They tried last night. Three of their bowlers had 600+ series (three games of 200+) Luckily, my buddy Jesse and I were pretty hot too and were both over 600 as well. Add in out handicap from our weaker bowlers and we were able to split the night. We won two games, but lost the team series point. We are still in first place by one point. I rolled a 234, 171, and 221. I missed a few easy spares, so I am still a bit miffed, but I was hammering strikes.

-more politics (sorry) - I watched a little of the Presidential debate this past week. I couldn't stomach much of it though, since half of the talking was done by McCain. It made me want to vote Democrat even more. Everything he said seemed to be in avoidance of every question he was asked. His best tactic seemed to be to say, not what he would do in a certain situation, but what Obama would do to make things worse. The most amazing thing he said was in response to a social security question. "How will you fix social security?" or something to that effect. His response was SO wishy washy. Something like, "We know how to fix social security. We always have." He then avoided the question completely and did not answer. When Obama called out McCain in regard to taxing health care and the fact that our $5000 health care crredit would go to insurance companies, NOT us, all McCain could do was sputter "Do the math." over and over. Oh, and if he said, "My friends" one more time, I was going to reach into my TV and choke him. (if the Secret Service read this, I would NOT do that to Mr McCain. It is only an expression.

OSU vs Perdue - I get to go to the OSU game tomorrow. Whoopie!! It is a 3:30 game so I get to sleep in a bit. I love going to OSU games. After the close one last week at Wisconsin, I am looking forward to Ohio State rolling up some big numbers against the Boilermakers. Plus, it is always a treat to see the Marching Band and relive old memories. GO BUCKS!!

A fun weekend

I had myself a pretty nice weekend. Friday started out playing poker. I didn't win anything, but I always have fun playing cards. Actually, it was a frustrating night of cards. There were a lot of hack players there. There's really no way to win against hack players when they get lucky. For example, I flop two pair (AA 7 7) bet big, get called, and the caller hits a better two pair on the turn (AA 10 10). I played it right, had the best hand going in, and got out drawn. Oh well.

Saturday, Jessica's grandpa, his lady friend, Jessica's aunt, uncle, cousin, dad, and dad's special friend were all over for dinner. I grilled some brats, burgers, and hot dogs. I had to drink alot during the OSU Wisconsin game. It was a great game to watch, but stressful. I guess football is a little boring when your team blows someone out, but it is much more relaxing when the game is in the bag. OSU went up first on a stellar run by Beanie wells. Re was on fire Saturday. The game went back and forth, requiring a last minute drive by OSU to pull out the win. It was exciting.

Sunday, we went to campus to watch Jessica's cousin play in a softball tournament. She is Ohio State's center fielder. OSU played three games, but Jessica and I took Gabe and Ally home after the first game. It was actually fun to watch. Brittany (Jessica's cousin) struck out a few times, adanced a runner that would score on a ground out, and then hit a double. Probably the most entertaining part of the game was all of the cheers. When a batter was up, the rest of the team would do a cheer for her. Each cheer was specific for each player. Also, they would razz the other team. If the pitcher threw a walk, the team would do a cheer about throwing balls. It was a hoot. OSU won the game we watched, but I am not sure about the other games.

After the game we watched, we actually too the kids to a nearby farm for a hay ride. We rode on a wagon pulled by a tractor, get to go through a cord field maze ( I kept calling it the maize maze), then we picked out pumpkins. There was also a pony ride that Ally LOVED, weak petting zoo (two cows and two rabbits), and a few inflatable things for the kids to bounce on. It was fun.

Good Night of Bowling

Thursday is bowling night again. Thursdays are great. Anyway, I was on my game pretty well and bowled my first 600 series of the season. 200, 235, and 170. I was a little miffed about the 170, but will take a 600 series any week. I primarily use two balls, a Raging Inferno and a Zone, both Brunswick. On oily lanes, I tend to use my Zone. It seems to break harder on oily lanes. Anyway, I used my Zone last night and it was hammering the pocket. FUN. I still missed a few easy spares, which drives me crazy, but all in all I am please with bowling so far. I am right around a 180-190 average. My team is doing well too. After three weeks we are undefeated and on top of our league. Is it a 26 week league though, so there is still a long way to go. I still might get a new ball this year, but so far my Inferno/Zone duo are doing pretty good.

Circling the Drain

I rarely talk politics. I rarely follow politics. Honestly, I don't understand enough of it and I get too bored by politics to really try to learn, but lately things have been happening that are scaring me a bit. To be honest, I fear that our country is going into the crapper big time. There is the money black hole that is the wars in Iraq and Afganistan, the soaring oil costs making it hard to travel, and now the proposed government buy outs of the banks ond mortgage companies that are in trouble. All in all, 'little guys' in this country, like me, could be looking at some financial issues in teh future. As it is, I have a hard enough time paying all the bills and having enough left over for any 'me' things (movies, bowling, poker, etc.) Now, I don't really know as much as I should to judge the government, but it seems to me like the current administration and the Republicans are in large part at fault. If all of the Democratic commercials stating that this Republican and that one give tax breaks to rich folk (who can afford taxes) and have allowed gas companies and the medical fields to over charge us middle class Americans all these years, I say it is time for a change. When Clinton was president, I broke my arm and paid no money for hospital bills. Noah broke his arm this year (under Bush's reign of terror) and I had to pay over $2000. Oil companies are allowed to break records with their earnings while I am forced to put a quarter of a tank of gas in because I can't afford a fill up. Billions of our tax dollars are going to Iraq, where they have billions of dollars in oil reserves. Seems to me that we should have stuck some kind of deal where they give us some oil for all of the help we are giving them.

I went to my aunt & uncle's house a while back and we saw a political commercial. My dad was there and said he didn't think much of McCain's choice in running mate and my uncle said Obama scared the hell out of him. I have no idea why, seeing as how he has been the only candidate that has said what he is going to do to help America. McCain's adds are all about bashing Obama. I think that my uncle is worried about all of the governemental regulations that Obama would put into place to help regulate big companies and keep them from screwing us poor folk. Well, isn't this govenement buy out of these banks the same thing? the government is trying to get up to pay for the banking blunders of these monster companies. At least Dubya is. Maybe the economy will fall apart, but I feel that these companies and their shadey practices caused this problem. If I lost all my money, would the government writeme a fat check to pay for all of my needs?

I really hope that the rest of America is tired of the Republican shenanigans and vote Obama. I don't see that McCain is going to help us middle class people. Wee need someone that is actually going to change things for the better.

A Few Things

Last night Jessica and I went with our friends, Barb and Brian, to the Movie Tavern to see Tropic Thunder. It has Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey Jr in the main roles, with Tom Cruise and Matthew McConnahay in bit parts. Basically, it is about a group of actors that are kind of has beens and primadonnas shooting a war movie that is about to be shut down. The director gets the idea to put cameras in the deep jungle and maroon the actors in the middle of nowhere to try to get them in the moment. Hilarity insues. It was kinda dumb in some parts, kinda silly in others, and down right hilarious in other parts. It has some fowl language and adult comedy, so it is not a kid movie. Pretty good though.

Ohio State looked good Saturday. They beat Minnesota. Beanie Wells was back and looked good and Terrelle Pryor looked like he is getting comfortable in the starting QB roll. The defense held Minnesota pretty much all game. The Gophers scored twice in the fourth quarter making it seem like the game was close, but the defense was rotating its starters out. It was a fun game to watch.

The Browns won their furst game today. woo-hoo! They beat the Bengals in a battle of the bad. I mean a battle for Ohio. this was not a good game to watch. Yes, the Browns won, which pleased me, but they looked terrible half the game. The Bengals looked terrible the whole game, so it worked out.

Oh Golly. We must REALLY suck

I haven't talked about it, because it makes me a little pissed, but after Ohio State got their asses kicked by USC, I thought to myself, "Wow. Either those guys are REALLY good, or OSU is really not good this season." It was total domination by USC over Ohio State. The dreams of the returning 18 starters dashed in one night. I was able to get over it, eventually, and started looking towards the Big Ten Season. Maybe Ohio State could salvage their season with a trip to the Rose Bowl. Now that the offense seems to be working a little better, maybe OSU is still top of the Big Ten. Maybe. Let's face it though, Ohio State's wins were hard fought and against opponents that they should have dominated. Now, last night happened.

Last night I watched the USC Oregon State game. You remember, USC that kicked OSU asses by 32 points. Well, they lost to Oregon State 27-21. You remember, Oregon State that lost to Penn State 45-7. Guess what, OSU and Penn State meet later this year. If the numbers say anything, OSU should lose to PSU by about 72. This is what I want to know. Did OSU play their worst game and USC their best game and then USC play their worst game and Oregon State their best game? I can only hope that is the case. I think the Buckeyes are on the rise. My only fear is that they win out, got to the Rose Bowl, only to meet USC again for another ass kicking.

Best Star Wars Game Ev'

I went out and got Star Wars: The Force Unleashed last week. I wish, at first, that I hadn't. I was pretty busy and was itching to play. I finally got the chance Tuesday, and IT IS AWESOME!!!! I have played all sorts of Star Wars games on all sorts of gaming systems. I have all three games for the super Nintendo and I have both Knights of the Old Republic games for my Xbox, the Legos Trillogy for my 360, and a few more here and there. I loved the KOTOR games, but my one complaint was that it was not very fluid play. It was like playing Dungeons and Dragons. You get one attack, they get one attack. Then you hope you do more damage than your enemy. TFU lets you tear into sll sorts of Storm Troopers and other bad guys. Even Rancors and AT-STs. FUN. Plus you get to duel with other Jedi and Sith. FUNNER. I am even able to Force grab TIE Fighters and slam them into other TIE fighters. FUNNEST!! Currently I am stuck at a spot in the game, so I may need to get the guide book to see what I need to do. Plus, there are bonus things hidden all over the place. I want to find them.


Even if you are not into Star Wars games, this is one that you should at least rent for a little while. It it the most fun I have had with a single player game since Fable. Oh, but the way, Fable 2 is out in October. Just in case you want to buy it for me.

Got Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks

Yesterday was a pretty fun day. For a Father's Day/Birthday present, I took my dad and the boys to see the final home game for the Indians. I know I have stated that I am not really a huge baseball fan, but I have been trying to follow the Indians more this season. Of course, like most Ohio teams seem to be of late, they have not done too well. They are one game over .500 for the first time since some time in April or May. Not good. At least not play offs good. Oh well. Anyway, the crowd was pretty big, even for the meaningless game: 36000+.

It was a great day to go to a baseball game. It was sunny, not too hot, and there was a nice breeze coming off the lake. Our seats were pretty good too. We were in the outfield, just down the first base line. It would have been nice if we were a little closer to the field, but we could see everything pretty well and we didn't have to climb into the nose bleed sections. The boys really seemed to enjoy themselves. I think Gabe got a little bored after a while. The best part about it is that the Indians won. They were lighting up the Detroit pitchers. The final score was 10-5 Tribe.

One thing I did NOT like about the game is the same thing that keeps me from going to most sporting events: the insane price of refreshments. A pop = $4, a hot dog = $4.50, beer = $6.75. Luckily, I won playing cards last week, so I had plenty of cash. I am, however, considering suing the Indians for large head discrimination. Adjustable hats don't fit me and I need a large sized fitted hat for me melon head. The souvenier shops did not have my size. Since I was planning on buying a hat at the game, I did not bring one of my own, and now have a bit of a sun burn on my forehead. Still, good times.

The Best Night of the Week is BACK!

Ahh Thursday. How I love thee. Let me count the ways. First, it is the day before Friday, so that is all good. Second, poker is played almost every Thursday at my firend Hasan's house. Some nights are good, some are bad but usually a night out playing cards is fun. The main reasons Thursdays are back on top of my favorite days of the week? You guessed it! My bowling league started up again this week. LOVE IT!! I bowled OK. Pretty average for me, actually. My first game was a little frustrating. I missed some easy spares and ended up with a 150+. The second game was better, a 190+ and my last game was a 200. So, I am starting the year off with about a 180 average. I would love to carry a 200 average, but after years of bowling and not improoving, I don't see that ever happening. Still, I have a blast on bowling nights.

Poker was good too. I started out really rough, going from $30 to $10 in about an hour. I was getting terrible cards and playing even worse. I started getting good cards though and ended up with $130. It was mostly due to getting good hands, but I started playing better too. We play mixed games now, so instead of just playing Texas Hold'em, we play Omaha, 7 card stud, 5 card draw (like in the movie Maverick), and Pineapple (like Hold'em, but you start with three cards. After the flop you discard one). The best hand I got was four threes in a hand of five card draw. I was dealt three 3's, so I discarded my other two cards and was dealt another three and a king. It was hard not to jump out of my skin. The best part about the hand it that someone raised before me. I re-raised, got called, and raked a good sized pot. Fun stuff.

Ike treated us like Tina

Sorry. That is a rather crude way to say that the remnants of Hurricane Ike swept through our area and did a lot of damage. Our house seems to be OK. I need to check out the roof a little better though. I think we may have lost a shingle or two. I'm just not too keen on climbing up there. Our neighborhood was pretty banged up though. Our next door neighbors had a tree knocked over and several other trees in the area were down. Plus, we lost power and our cable services. We were lucky enough that our power came back on after a day. some areas of Columbus are still without power. My cable access is still down though. This means I have no internet and can't work from home. That's right! I'm coming to you like from Nationwide's Rings Rd building. I had to bring my PC to plug into some extra monitors. Fun stuff. I lucked out and found two working monitors with an active ethernet port nearby so that I didn't have to hunt around forever. Hopfully I will be able to return to my work from home status shortly.

Big Game today

Ohio State is a big question mark for tonight's match up against #1 USC. Will Beanie Wells play? As of last night, the answer is 'no'. Will the defense be able to stop a powerhouse offense like UCS? Considering it could barely stop Ohio, I am not sure. Will the offense be able to function without it's #1 running back? Well, this is the kind of game that twenty of last years starters returned to play. They came back to win a National Title. I think that the emmense about of experience will win out here. The veteran defense will shut down the young USC quarterback and Boeckman will pick apart the defense. GO BUCKS!!!

I hate Carson Palmer

I was watching Sports Center yesterday and I heard something that made me hate Carson Palmer. I already didn't like him much sonce he is on the roster of the Browns' in state rival, the Bengals, but now I just down right hate the guy. I would say hate is a strong word, but in this case, it really isn't. Being a UCS quarterback now playing in the state of Ohio, I guess someone interviewing Carson Ass-Plumber abouthis thoughts on Ohio State. His reply was something to the point of his hating OSU and not understanding why Ohioans are so gung ho about the Buckeyes. Hmm...maybe because they are the most talented ans successful football team in Ohio? Yes, I say that the Buckeyes are the most talented team in Ohio, even with two NFL teams in the state and being a Browns fan. OK. that may be a strong statement, but Ohio State has certainly had more success latey than the Bengals or the Browns. That point asside, my message to Carson Palmer is this:

Mr Ass-Plumber, you play for a team in the state of Ohio. Do you thing that, perhaps, maybe some of you fans might also be fans of Ohio State? Stop showing the state that you are a fuck-o and show a little tact. Or at least start winning some titles before bashing the only team in Ohio that has been playing in any title games lately. Oh, AND OSU wins their conference.

PS. You are a dick.

Rough Weekend

It was a rough weekend for my football teams. True, Ohio State won, but they looked like crap and could have easily lost against MAC school Ohio. If it weren't for a fumble recovery and a punt return for a touchdown, we would we talking about the slim chance of a Big Ten title, rather than another shot at a National Title. The defense was pretty good and only allowed OU one score, but the offense without 'Beanie' Wells was pretty pathetic. Honestly, I think that it was a case of the Buckeyes looking ahead to USC and not taking OU very seriously. In the fourth quarter, when the game was in doubt, the Buckeyes turned it up and took over the game. They played like they should have the entire game. The main problem was OU's mobile quarterback. I just hope that USC's guy is a slow pocket passer. One thing about the game that suprised me didn't happen in the game. Lou Holtz was talking nice about the Buckeyes after the game. I am so used to commentators OSU bashing. Lou said they would be fine against USC. Maybe he remembers the but kickings the Buckeyes gave to Norte Dame back when he was coach. Anyway, thanks Lou.

The Browns looked awful yesterday. They let Dallas move the ball at will and the offense was ineffectual. This is supposed to be a good year for the Browns, but if they can't hang with the NFL elite, there is really not much point in going to the play offs. I guess they have a bunch of injuries right now, but their schedule isn'y going to get any easier.

Glad no one esle I know is single...

OK. I'm not going to name any names, but I am most likely going to a wedding this fall. If you are a regular reader and read the blogs of other people I know, you may be aware of this upcoming wedding. In October. The fourth, to be precise. If you are not aware, let me say that I went to school with this person and he is a big sports fan. At least I THOUGHT that he is a big sports fan. I guess could be wrong though. A true sports fan wouldn't plan their wedding on a football Saturday. Would they? Especially on a day that #3 Ohio State plays #11 Wisconsin. Not to mention #1 USC and #18 Oregon. I have dealt with this before. Back when my friend Ben got married, it was on a football Satarday and I think OSU played Illinois. The reception was at a country club and all of the OSU fans were in the bar crowded around the TV. Yes, I will DVR the game and will probably find some way to listen to it on the radio or something, but people should really take into account the Ohio State Football season when planning their weddings, birthdays, baptisms, etc. It is a late game, at least, so I will be able to avoid being one of those guys at the wedding with a mini TV, cheering at an OSU touchdown during the 'I-dos'. Ahhhh. The things one does in the name of friendship.

Big Ten Blues

As expected, Ohio State rolled over Youngstown State 43-0. The defense was stellar, allowing only 74 total yards. The offense did well, but could have done better. Yes, they scored 43 points, but they had to settle for a few fieldgoals after getting first and goal. All three quarterbacks saw playing time, which is great. Boeckman is still the clear starter, but freshman phoenom Terrelle Pryor ran for 52 yards and an 18 yard touchdown. He was also 4 for 4 passing his first drive. Fun stuff. The bad thing is that, Heisman hopeful, Beanie Wells fell lame in the second half with a foot injury. X-rays were negative, but there isn't too much more information than that. Maybe a dislocated toe or something like that...... Hopefully he will be well enough to play in the big game coming up against USC.

I called this post 'Big Ten Blues' because, aside from the powder puff teams that the Big ten school should whomp on, Big Ten teams did dismally. Illinois lost a hich scoring game to Missouri, Michigan State lost a close one to California, and the shocker of the day was Michigan losing to Utah 25-23. Actually, it wasn't much of a shocker to me. I am predicting that Michigan is going to have a dismal season this year. A new coach, new starting QB, new offensive scheme.....it is going to be a long season for the boys in blue. So sad.

Still, even though I have a bumper sticker that states that my favorite two teams are Ohio State and whoever's playing Michigan, the opening week losses by the above stated teams to quality opponents makes the Big Ten look bad. Everyone has been Big Ten hating lately and the SEC and Pac Ten are the conferences to beat. The Big Ten seems to have become a big joke in the NCAA football circles. Unfortunately, Ohio State has contributed to this. The Big Ten's top team has been smoked in the big game two years running. If they go to the big game and lose again, the Big Ten will be even worse off.

Greatest City EVER

As you know, I work for an insurance company. I deal with a lot of people's information (names, birth dates, address, etc) and I just came across the GREATEST city name EVER. I am going to post a link to a map or something, just so you know it is legit. Some of you may not get it, but I'm sure some of you will get a kick out of this. Anyone want to move to Frackville PA? I am going to be tickled by this for hours!

16 hours until kickoff! Woo-Hoo!! GO BUCKS!!!

My Job Sucks Right Now

Want to know what I am doing? I am going through a spread sheet with many many contract numbers on it looking through old paperwork to see if there are little boxes marked on applications. If so, I put a 'yes' on the spread sheet. If not, I put a 'no'. If the box is marked 'yes', I have to look through additional paperwork to verify that it is true, false, or inconclusive. It SSSSSSSUUUUUUUUUUUUCKS! The worst part is that our viewing system (the program that lets me look at all the paperwork that we have on file for annuities) gets REALLY slow on old documents. So, I try to look at something and then sit and wait five minutes for it to open. And we are doing this for every state in the USA that requires specific paperwork to be sent in under certain conditions. My job really sucks right now.

Magic: The Gathering - An Old Addiction

Back in highschool, I was addicted to comic books. I would go with Woody and Moe in the Woodmobile to JC's Comic Stop or the crappy discount comic book place behind JC's and blow all of my hard earned money on my weekly fix of comics. That is what we did. Good times were had by all. As I entered my college years, I started running out of money and cut back on comics. I started working at Friendly's to help fund my lifestyle. I met a guy named Brandon, who turned me on to Magic: The Gathering. I thought comics tore through my money.......DAMN.

If you don't know, Magic is a collectable card game. You buy cards, make decks, and play games against other people. The concept is that you are a wizard and the cards are your spells. You use your spells to conjure creatures and other things to defeat your opponent. To win, you have to get his/her life count from 20 to 0. The kicker is that you have to buy cards to play with. The more cards you have, the more spells you have access to. I bought cards buy the boat load. The makers of Magic, The Gathering really know how to milk it too. Every couple of months to a year, they would release a new generation of cards. The newer cards were more powerful or had different abilities that the older cards could not combat. So, you needed to buy new cards to stay current and competative. I have thousands of cards. Literally. I was starting to look at them as an investment. However, like with every other collectable that is currently hot, the makers flooded the market. Now, they may be worth a little but, but nothing nearly as much as I thought they would be. Oh well.

Anyway, I got all of my cards out over the weekend and went through them. It took a while to go through them all, believe me. I thought about making some decks to play with, but I don't really have anyone to play with anymore. It's not like Magic is the hot game that it used to be. I could probably find some people to play with if I tried, but I would have to reload with newer cards and catch up on all of the new tricks. It could get costly. I guess I could start trading in some of the old stuff, but I would need to research and do procing and a whole lot of work. I should just put them, and all my old comics, on Ebay. More work.

Back to School - yippie!

The boys go back to school tomorrow. The end to a long summer. Gabe is looking forward to it. He really likes school. He's going to be a first grader now. His school has kindergarten and first graders in the same class rooms, so he has the same teacher and room as last year. I kind of doubt that Noah is looking forward to school as much as Gabe is. He said he wants to see his friends, but I doubt he wants to go to classes all day. Plus, he has to be up before 7:00 am to catch his bus. No more lounging in bed until noon.

The only downside for me is that I have to be up early to get Gabe up and ready for school on my days off. Granted, I am usually up early with the kids anyway, but the possibility of sleeping in is better than not having the option at all. Other than that, it will be just me and Ally home during the days. No more bickering to deal with, just one kid to feed, and a much more relaxing atomosphere.

mmmmmmmmm.....veggies

I'm sure Woody would disagree, but the best thing about summer is all of the great veggies I get out of my garden. It has been a pretty good growing season so far. Tomatoes, peppers, squash, zuchinni, cucumbers, green beans, and all sorts of herbs. YUM. I have commented on my gigantic tomatoe plants, but really the most producing plants have been, by far, my zuchinni plants. Last year I planted 4 and this year I planted three in order to reduce my crop. Well, no such luck. I have had SO many that I can't give them away fast enough. Next year I will plant two so that I have more room for green beans.

My favorite veggie is tomatoes. I have maybe six varieties this year. Yellow and red grape tomatoes, and then red, pink, yellow, and orange big tomatoes. YUM!! They are SO much better than anything you can find store bought. My dad starts them and then gives me the plants when they are about a foot tall. I am sure that is why they do so well. Plus, I fertilize and water and take care of them. This year has actually been a bad year for my tomatoe plants. Yes, they are tall, but I think they have a fungus or disease that is making them produce less. I still have had plenty of them for me and the family, with a few to share, but not nearly the amount I had last year.

This year was a first for me. I actually made some pickles and some salsa. The pickles are OK, but I think they needed a bit more dill. The salsa is GOO-OOD. It was really easy to make too. Basically, it was just chopping up tomatoes, peppers, and onions, then adding cilantro, lime juice, salt and garlic. I added one of my hot peppers too for some heat. The first batch, I used a red hot pepper and it about burned my mouth off. I made a second batch today with a green hot pepper (the more red, the hotter the pepper) and it is not nearly as hot. I also have had all sorts of terrific salads and dishes made with fresh yummy veggies. I am sad that the summer is almost over.

Why didn't anyone tell me?

Hey, how come no one told me about FaceBook? I started blogging so that I could keep people up to date with me and so that I could keep in touch with them, but FaceBook seems to work a lot better. Well, at least for keeping in touch. The 'wall' feature seems to make it easier to post quick messages to people and have little conversations. fun stuff. I wa suprised by some of the old AWHS people I found. Some old friends, like Anne Marie, Alana, McNutt.....some people I forgot about too or was never really close with. It's Mona's fault. She prompted me to check out her reunion postings on FaceBook and I needed to join so that I could view what she posted. Now I have another fun little site to play with while I am bored as hell at work. I haven't really done too much with it yet, just put my name up and sent some friend requests, but I will probably add pictures and stuff like that. Are there anymore features I should be aware of?

Anyone watching the Olympics?

The Olympics are a double edged sword for me. On one hand you have the hours of TV programming that is not airing because of this every-four-year sports fest. Nothing but reruns and bad reality TV. On the other hand, you get sports to watch all day. Of course, the sports themselves are another double edged sword. For example, while eating lunch today, we watched Olympics women's team sabre fencing with the USA going for the bronze medal. Seriously? Now, I am all for the thought and spirit behind the Olympics: Nations coming together in sports competitions rather than in war. However, do we really need to watch all of these 'B' competitions? I know I, personally, don't need to watch them, but do they really need to take up valuable air time? If people don't usually watch the sport all year round, why must we be subjected to them once every four years? Is there really an interest in sports like rowing, weight lifting, shooting, synconized diving, and so on? Ok, Ok, there are some Olympic sports that I enjoy. I actually tune into the Olympics when there is nothing on, hoping to catch something interesting. What I like:

USA Basketball - With the talent they have, if they do not win the gold medal, we should quit playing basketball and Lebron should personally pay each US citizen $20. He can afford it.

Phelps - I usually don't like watching swimming, but this guy is amazing. Going for eight gold medals? Are you serious???

Sand Volleyball - I prefer the women to the men, yes I am a perv, but the sport is fun to watch.

Women's gymnastics - I can't believe what these girls can do with their bodies. It amazes me. Not just in a perv way either. I can see Alydia getting into gymnastics. I would enjoy the men's gymnastics more, but they make me feel like a weakling. the arms on these guys are HUGE.

Soccer - I like soccer.

Well, that's my two cents on the Olympics. I like some of it, don't like other parts. Probably the most interesting thing has been the microscope that the Chinese people have been under. They have done some really crazy stuff. Forcing cab drivers to learn English, making female guides with 'unshapely' legs wear dark stockings, and having a 'pretty' little girl lip sync to another 'unappealing' looking girl's singing on live TV..... Craziness.

Where will they go?

I was thinking about the upcoming Harry Potter movie, The Half Blood Prince, and thought about reading the book again. The Half Blood Prince and The Deathly Hallows are the only two books that I have not read more than one time. Anyway, I started thinking about the new movie, out in November, and then started wondering about the actors. The kid actors, more specifically. Some of the adult actors, like Alan Rickman (Snape) already have extablished carreers and should be able to find more work. However, after seven movies, being cast in such huge and popular roles, what will these kid actors do with their lives? I'm sure that none of them will be wanting for money, but will they want to retire in their early 20s? Can you see Daniel Radcliffe as any other character than Harry Potter? Or Emma Watson as anyone other than Hermione Granger? Will they be doomed to the child actor curse of falling into depression and a life of drigs after ther carreers are over, like so many child actors before them? Look at the Coreys, Haim and Feldman. What have they done since their childhood glory days other than get in trouble or do bad reality TV? Will Harry and Ron show up in ten years in some mansion surrounded by cameras and young girls trying to win a date with a has been? Will Hermione end up gracing the pages of adult magazines in order to make a buck because no movie makers will put up with her poofy hair and snotty attitude? I guess there are exceptions to the rule. Alyssa Milano was a child star, appearing in Who's the Boss and some movies, and she ended up making a mint with Charmed. But really, how many child actors are out there that made it just as big in their adult careers? I am trying to think of more child star examples, but I guess my point is made by the fact that I can't.

Gonna have a Cook Out

With the upcoming Ohio State football season coming up, Jessica and I decided we are going to have a cook out for the home opener. If any of my faithful readers are going to be in town on the 30th of August, send me an email and I can send you the information. We usually go all out for these things: food, drink, the game on the big screen, games, maybe some poker after the game. It should be a good time. Kids are welcome, of course. Hopfully, they will play out in the back yard rather than tearing up my basement. I can hope, I guess.

Doctor Dark Knight

Jessica and I went to see Dark Knight last night. I have to say , it was a really good movie. Lots of action, a good story line, good effects......no Katie Holmes though. I don't mind that, since she really isn't a great actress, but the girl they got to replace her was like a poor man's version of Katie Holmes. Not really attractive. Anyway, I digress. Heath Ledger was a TERRIFFIC Joker. It's too bad it was his last roll. If the Joker is in any future Batman films, it will be some cheesey actor trying to act like Heath Ledger being the Joker. A few things that bugged me though:

-Batman had a lisp. I think that he had some kind of retainer or mouth piece that made his S's lisp. It really started to bug me. What criminal would be terrified of a Dark Knight with a lisp?

-They keep killing bad guys. This was something that bothered me in the older Batman films. How can you re-use villans when they are dead? I thought that Two Face was going to be the third Batman foe for the next movie. Nope. At least they didn't make the Michael Keaton's Batman error of killing the Joker. The Joker is probably the greatest of the foes.

I wonder who the next villian to go up against batman will be. I hope they keep the stories fresh and non-cheesey. There's the Riddler, the Penguin, Mr Freeze, and of course, Cat Woman. Will there be a Robin? A Bat Girl? If they keep the movies more realistic and less like a comic, I think this franchise will go far.

We also watched the season finale of Dr Who last night. I'm not too sure what I thought of it. I think I need to watch parts one and two again so that I can get the story all at once. I think I am a little miffed by it all. It seems like it was chaulk full of plot conveniences and things happening just because they needed to happen so the Doctor would live to fight again. I am glad they are keeping David Tennant on. I was concerned that a new Doctor might come along to ruin things, like after Tom Baker left the old school show.

What's with the Hate?

I played cards last night, won some money, but heard something interesting. Someone at the table asked, "Have you seen the story on ESPN.com?" Well, I hadn't so I ask what he was talking about. Well, the story stated that, my beloved Ohio State Buckeyes are now the nation's most hated college football team. When did this happen? I guess some good natured hate comes with all of the winning seasons the Buckeyes have been having lately. A bit of jealousy much? Of course, it could be that people (like me) hate seeing the Buckeyes go to the National Championship game and losing two year in a row. I love seeing them go to the title game, HATE seeing them lose. A lot of people seem to think they have a good chance of going again this year. We'll see. Anyway, I know there are OSU haters, even here in Columbus, but when did we become the nation's most hated team? I guess it had to be someone. My guess is that people are tired of hating Notre Lame since they suck so bad lately, and I know not everyone can share my healthy hatred of M*ch*g*n, but I am a little suprised that OSU jumped into the throne of themost hated.

Another interesting story I heard this weekend was about all of the troubles Penn State has been having lately. Apparently JoePa has been having a rough time keeping his players in line. My understanding is that the kicker was talking smack at a party (or people were talking smack to him) and he started a fight. He got beat up a little, so he called the rest of the team and, to proove their team work skills, they kicked the crap out of some students. Then there is this: "According to an "Outside the Lines" report this week, since 2002, 46 Penn State football players had criminal charges filed against them and 27 either pleaded guilty or were convicted." True, all teams, including OSU, has off the field troubles, but damn.

29 day until kick off!!! GO BUCKS!!!

My one beef about shooters

I have mentioned before that I love first person shooters on my XBox 360. I guess it is the rush you get from the (mock) kill or be killed situations. I am not great at these games, but I can hold my own. Lately I have been playing Call of Duty 4 alot over Halo 3. My Halo 3 disk got scratched, or I probably would have never tried COD 4. Anyway, I am better at H3 in that I win more games. I win a few COD 4 games, but not as much. ANYWAY, the main point to this post is that there is a HUGE difference in the two games. Yes, they are both shooters. the big difference is the controls. The right trigger is shoot for bother games and A is jump, but beyone that, there are HUGE differences. You may think that it wouldn't make much of a difference, but it does. I got a new H3 game this week, tried to play it, and got SMOKED. The biggest difference is that the melee button is different for each game. It is a big deal when you try to hit someone in H3, but kneel instead. Or vice-versa. I guess I am going to have to go one month playing COD4 and then another month playing H3 so that I can keep the controls straight in my head. I wish that each game would use the same basic controls for each action. Maybe I can change them in my options menu.....

Vacation, sorta

I took a few days off last week and took the family to meet my parents at Great Wolf Lodge. It is an indoor water park in Sandusky, OH. It was pretty fun. I say that it was vacation sorta because we had to chase Gabe and Ally all over the place. Mostly Gabe. He LOVED the water slides. The picture is the result of a huge bucket of water getting dumped on a bunch of people. Noah is in there somewhere. It was cold water compared to the heated pools, so I avoided it. Gabe's favorite thing was the leasure creek thing. He woud get into the tube and run around the creek. It was cute. Ally seemed to enjoy the little kid things. she went on this one slide over and over again. She would squeel each time down. It was cute. There is also an out door pool, but the main fun was indoors. It was a little chilly outside. I took a few pictures, but didn't really want to take my camera around too much. I was worried it would get wet. Plus all the lockers were full and I was worried about it getting lost or stolen. I also didn't want to look like a perv trying to take pictures of little girls in their bikinis. That scares me a little. One day my little girl is going to be a teen wanting to to wear tiny bikinis. I think it is a little scary that they make bikinis for young girls. Why do little girls need to be showing so much skin in public? Seems to me that it would fuel sickos and perverts. I will get off my high horse now.

Yup. It's Bigger Than a Baby's Arm!

I've been picking crazy big zuccinis from my garden lately. Plus a bunch of cucumbers and some yellow squash. Still, not too many tomaotes yet. Just little ones. The big ones are starting to get ripe though. It is so exciting having fresh yummy tomaotes. I am a little worried about my tomato plants though. They have some brown leaves at the bottom. I hope they are not diseased. That six foot plant I posted about before is now bigger than ever. I can't even reach the top anymore. I guess I will have to get the tomatoes that grow too high after they fall off the plant. I just love fresh veggies. The picture of my hand and the plant is me reaching up as high as I can and still not reaching the top.

Ramblings

1. I got the latest NCAA 2009 football game. I'm not really too sure why, other than I like how it gets me pumped up about the upcoming football season. I like playing the game as well, I just am not too good at it. Yet. I played four online games and lost two. The other two, I was winning and my opponents wussed out and quit. You don't get credit for a win if your opponent quits. I was urked. Really, there aren't too many changes to the game from the 2008 version. Most of the same plays and such. There are a few new bells and whistles, but nothing jaw dropping.

2. Is BSG ever coming back? I hope that the lame finding Earth episode wasn't the show finale. There has to be more right? We still need to know who the last Cylon is and what happens to everyone in the fleet. I hope they are just putting the finishing touches on the last several episodes. I am jonesing.

3. Shows I am excited about returning: Eureka at the end of the month, Heroes in September, Terminator, the Sarah Connor Chronicles in September. There was another one, but I forget what. Speaking of TV, everyone should watch Wipe Out at least once this summer. The first time I saw it, I about died laughing. People go through obsticle courses and challenges in order to win $50000. It is something you have to see. Describing it won't do it justice.

What is it about Zombies?

What is up with zombies? I mean, why do I like the zombie movie genre so much? Not just the movies, games and TV shows too. I have seen almost any George Romero movie out there and their remakes. Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead, all are great fun for me. Add to that Resident Evil flicks, 28 Days later, 28 Weeks Later, you name it, I've probably seen it. Let's not forget two HILARIOUS zombie spoofs: Shawn of the Dead and Fido. The whole idea is rediculous though, the dead rising to feed on the living. Rediculous. It could never really happen, right? I think we all would like to think it could happen though. No hear me out. I think everyone has a bit of a killer spirit inside them. Not enough that any sane person would act on it, but it is there. Now, if an event arose that would make it acceptable to go on a zombie killing spree, it could be exciting. Scary as hell, but exciting. I would definately go for the old school slow and stupid zombies though, rather than the scary as shit modern day fast running zombies. Look at one of my (and Woody's) favorite games on the Xbox: Dead Rising. Basically it is a zombie killin' fun fest of happiness. I hope another one comes out soon.

There are a few things about zombies though that I do not understand. A constant in all zombie movies is that the living dead all want to eat human flesh. Why? I guess the only reason that counts is "just because it is scary." Living dead that just walk around eating plants or plain not eating would be lame. The biggest thing that always bothered me though is why don't they eat each other? I guess they like the freshness, but you see movies where the dead are eating corpses they have killed. Why do these dead (the ones getting eaten) not rise up and say, "stop eating me bitch"? At what point does tasty live people turn into icky dead people?

A side note: Jessica and I watched a cheesey zombie movie where one of the dead (before he died that is) said that he was a vegitarian. So, after he died he did not eat people. I thought this a rediculous notion, but hilarious. Could you imagine the living dead vegitarians walking around looking for fresh veggies to kill and devour? My guess is that the people eaters would make fun of them and cast them out of their zombie society.

Damn I am weird sometimes. And NO. I don't really want the dead to rise and try to eat my ass. I am just trying to understand my zombie facination.

Fun Weekend

I guess Friday was pretty uneventful. We watched some TV.

Saturday, I went to play some cards. I usually don't go out on the weekends, so that I can stay home with the family, but for some reason, I felt the need to get out. I guess I was feeling tired of the same old-same old. I ended up winning $80. I beat up on my buddy Hasan most of the night, which made me feel a little bad. I had a huge suck out against him. He went all in for $30 and I called him. I had a pair of aces with a 10 and he had a pair of aces with a jack. The last card to come up was a 10, giving me two pair. Another hand against him, he his a full house and I hit the hand of all hands: a Royal Flush. I had never seen a royal flush in real life. It was fun.

Sunday was more fun for Gabe than is was for me. Actually, it was a little irritating for me. Gabe was invited to party at Pump it Up, which is an inflated play ground of sorts. there was a bouncer castle, a big slide, and an obstacle course. He had fun and was running around like a maniac. Actually, about 20 kids were. It's amazing how weird some kids are. One asked if I wanted him to tickle me. I said no. He then tickled me and said it was opposite day. Are you serious? What kid would do that to a stranger? Then, the birthday boy started crying because his mom told him to wait and eat his cake after everyone was served. Well, she didn't tell everyone this, so all the kids were eating cake before the birthday boy. I can see how he could be upset, but to go on and cry like that (for a while) seemed a bit much. It really makes me feel better about Gabe. Now I know his whining and overreacting is normal for the age. He was pretty well behaved at the party. Accident prone though. He scraped himself up a but on the slide. I think it happens alot there since the staff people had a big supply of bandages. It was frustrating for me because the place was in the middle of nowhere and the sign was on the back of the building where you couldn't see it. I looked for it for about 15 minutes until I found it.

The Key to Victory

I finally have this Call of Duty 4 game figured out. I have been stuck at the bottom of the pack in my multi player matches. I usually have an equal kill to death ratio and often have the fewest deaths of all players, so I was confused as to why I never won or came into the top three. The key: air support. One this about this game that I find unfair is that all players are NOT treated equally. The higher ranked people get better perks and weapons, making it easier for them to kill us lowly folk. Still, I didn't understand how the top people would get 25 kills before everyone else got 10 or more. It seemed so unlikely. Then, it happened. Yesterday, I got three kill right off the bat, which give me a radar perk (so I can see where everyone is on the map). Then, I got two more, giving me an air strike (I get to call in jets that bomb an area I specify, which gave me another kill. After my seventh kill in a row, I got to call in an attack chopper. This is where the fun starts. A chopper comes in a guns down everyone else in the game. I started getting kills on top of kills. I didn't win the match, but I came in second, scoring 20 kills. I was pretty stoaked. I quit playing right after that so that I wouuld end on a high note for the day.

Six foot Maters

As I commented on Betsy's blog, I have some big ass tomato plants this year. My dad starts tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and several other plants in his basement every spring. No, not pot. As a result, we get a jump on the growing season and more yummy veggies every year. It is no trick of the camera or a weird aspect, that plant in the back is taller than my fence. My six foot fence. It is a cherry tomato plant, so it has about 50 little green tomatoes waiting to ripen. someare about ready. We also have yellow cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, red tomatoes, yellow tomatoes, and pink tomatoes. YUM. One of the best things in the summer is cutting up some tomatoes, adding some fresh parsley and onion, and putting Italian dressing on it. It is great! See some more plant and kid pictures on my Flickr page. Here's a close up of the six footer.

Xbox Live WTF

I was playing on my Xbox yesterday and got booted from a Call of Duty game I was in. I then received a message that stated that my Live ID was logged in at a different location. I thought it weird, but turned off my Xbox to do some things around the house. Later, I tried to play again and when I logged into Xbox Live I got a message stating that my profile had been suspended. Huh? The message also stated that I could log back in today, but it did not say why I was suspended. This morning I called Xbox support and talked to someone that gave me no information at all. So, I check my email and saw one from Microsoft stating that my account was suspended because they received complaints about some inappropriate content on my account. Huh? I have no idea what that could be because I have no idea how I would go about putting up inappropriate content on my Xbox Live account. So, I am clueless as to why I have been suspended from Xbox Live. I don't talk trash, I don't have a camera to take naughty pictures, and I don't post nasty comments anywhere. the only thing I could think of is that someone gained access to my account somehow or someone just filed a complaint against me just to fuck with me. I am hoping that this was some sort of fluke and won't happen again. I would hate to have to start a new Live account and lose all of my achievements and gamer stats.

General Posts

- I played some cards last night. It was my first good night in a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time. I was hitting HUGE hands and making good plays with them. I ended up winning $215. The biggest hand I had was four queens. I think I won about $40 that hand. I also hit some straights and a full house. I'm still WAY down for the year, but it was a nice night. It's alot easier to win when the cards fall your way.

- Happy 4th everyone! I have to work Saturday and Suday, but I get to have tomorrow off. The boys will be out of town. Gabe is staying with my mom for the weekend and Noah is with his bio-dad again. It will be just me and my girls for the long weekend. I don't think we have anything exciting planned, but it will be nice to have a break from the boys' fighting.

- I bowled a 289 the other night! On the Wii.....I finally figured out how to be pretty consistant rolling the Wii ball. I was perfect until the tenth frame. Then I got robbed and left a ten pin. Oh well. I would much rather roll a 300 in real life. I think I am going to get a new bowling ball for the next bowling season.

Finally!!!

Someone with a brain finally came out and made my satellite TV work. He had to move the dish. I am a little irritated that I have a dish arm sticking out of the side of my house, but I will be able to remove it. The dish is now up higher near the second floor. It is silly, I know, but it was very exciting to watch something on a local network. I am just glad that most networks have their shows online to watch.

Fierce Storms Last Night

Last night Noah came into our room and told us he could hear the tornado sirens. Great. We tried to turn our the TV to see what the weather report was, but since we don't get any networks (yup. still) we had to rely on The Weather Channel and the radio. Basically a huge line of storms was traveling straight down I-70 towards Columbus. We live off of I-70. We are all fine and the house seems like it is all in one piece, but the wind and rain last night was a bit scary. I would like to turn on the TV to see what, if any, kind of damage was done, but as previously mentioned, we have no local networks. There were a few thunder booms that literally shook me. It is the only time that I can remember actually FEELING thunder. It was a little scary.

Open letter from Time Warner to Eric - I told you so.

You may remember that I switched from Time Warner Cable to Dish Network a whild back to get the Big Ten Network. The OSU vs. Wisconsin game was going to be on the Big Ten Network and I wasn't going to miss it (Time Warner doesn't carry the network). I was pretty happy with Dish Network. More channels, more HD channels, more DVR space, Sirius radio, and The Big Ten Network. All for, basically, the same price as cable. HOWEVER, things have since changed. If you don't know, when you use satellite TV, you pick up different channels from different signals from different satellites. I have counted three satellite signals that we recieve. Two work, one does not. Satellite 129 is seriously making me consider cancelling our satellite service. It is pretty hit and miss as to whether or not satellite 129 will work or not. Rain ir shine, it doesn't matter. You may think that this is not a huge deal, but satellite 129 carries all of the HD channels and our local networks. So, we can't watch the local news or local channel programming without some SERIOUS signal breaks or no signal at all. We have called, they have sent techs, four times. Each time, they fiddle with the dish, it gets better for a day or so, and then it goes back to crap. We are supposed to get someone else out here to fix the dish AGAIN this Thursday. If they can't get it righ this time, I am going to ask what we need to do to get rid of the service. I think Insight Cable carries the Big Ten Network. Unfortunately, they will probably try to hit us with an early contract agreement charge. I think it is $200. AAARRGGHHH!

New Music

I got a few new albums in the last few weeks. I haven't have too much time to listen to them though:

- Disturbed - Indestructable - I like heavy rock music. Not ear bleeding gives you a headache speed metal, but some good hard rock. That's Disturbed in a nutshell. I have always been a fan. So far so good. Another solid album.

- Seether - Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces - I haven't listened to this one too much yet. I usually listen to music in the car. I need to listen to my IPod more when I play Xbox rather that my Sirius radio. Again, I like all of Seether's old music, so I am hoping that this new album is just as good.

- Fair to Midland - Fables From a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times is True - Nice, long album name, eh? This is a different kind of album for me. As mentioned, I listen to Sirius radio when I play Xbox. Well, they play two songs on this album that I really like. All in all, I really like the whole album. The singer's voice is kind of schrill at times, king of like a young Geddy Lee from Rush. Maybe that's why I like them. They have a Irish feel about their music. It is different and I like it.

- Coheed and Cambria - Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through The Eyes of Maddness - Another mouthful of an album name. I just got this yesterday, so I haven't listened to it much. Again, I heard a song I really liked on Sirius called Welcome Home. It is very good. The rest of the album has a The Mars Volta feel. I don't know how much I'll like it. I need to give it a few listens.

I bought the first two albums at Best Buy, so I have the CDs. The other two I bought on ITunes, so they are only on my computer and IPod. I can back them up on a CD, but probably won't. It seems a little weird though, buying music that is not on a CD.

The Happening

I mentioned yesterday that Jessica and I were going to see M. Knight Shyamalan's lastest film, The Happening. As mentioned, I have really enjoyed all of M's previous movies. They are all original ideas and usually have a big shocker at end. Bruce Willis is already dead, Samuel L Jackson is the main villian, etc. Some of the films are a bit 'out there' but if you can appreciate a good story, M knight tells some of the best. Anyway, The Happening probably won't go down as the greatest film ever, but I liked it. I can understand how some people may not like it because it requires some suspension of disbelief. It's a pretty intense film though. Some gore, some funniness, some action. I don't really want to go into what all happens, because Betsy wanted to see it, but it kind of makes you think about where our world is heading. The ending is a little anti-climactic, but all in all the movie was pretty intense. I also saw an X-Files movie trailer. I'm not sure how I feel about this after the X-Files have been on the shelf for so long. I'm sure I will see it, but will probably wait for NetFlix to send it to me. Oh and Zooey Deschanel has the most beautiful blue eyes. I give The Happening a B, but can see how others might not like it.

I guess I can go into the story a little. I had already figured out most of what was going to happen from the previews. Stop reading if you don't want to know.

OK. Basically, people living on the east coast start killing themselves due to a toxin in the air. If you've seen the previews, you see people jumping off roofs, stabbing themselves, jumping into lion's cages, etc. A lot of the deaths are pretty graphic and gross. The toxin first starts in large populace areas, so everyone starts leaving the cities and towns, but then it starts spreading. You follow Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel as they try to survive. They basically find evidence of the toxin wherever they try to go (seeing dead people), so they keep trying to evade it. It's a good thing that this movie was kind of short or else I would have gotten tired of seeing Mark and Zooey running all over the place seeing dead people. All in all The Happening is M Knight's 'save the planet' message. The toxin is occuring naturally from plants where people are, like Mother Nature warning us they she can kill us if we don't stop our distructive ways. Also, it shows how people are really kind of crappy to each other as everyone adopts a "save yourself" kind of attitude. The acting wasn't great, the ending was ho-hum, but the story and suspense made this movie worth the watch for me. No big shocker though, like in some of M's other films. You basically figure out where the toxin is coming from about half way through the movie.

Just what I ordered

Some fun things planned now. I'm not exactly going to be a social butterfly, but at least I have some things to look forward to.

- Tonight Jessica and I are going out for dinner and a movie. We LOVE the Movie Tavern. We actually went there a few weeks ago to see Kung Fu Panda, which was pretty good. Well, tonight we are going to see The Happening. I have heard mixed reviews, be we really like all of M Knight Shymalan's other movies. Hopfully the bad reviews are just from low brow people that don't get M Knight's films or they were expecting something different. I am going to keep an open mind.

- I got good news in regards to my Ohio State footbal tickets this year. Instead of getting a crappy 'pre-season' game like Younsgtown State, I am getting tickets for a Big Ten game. October 11th I get to go see the Buckeyes stomp all over Perdue. I think the Perdue Boilermakers are on a team low lately, but it's still a Big Ten game. It is a different feeling in the Shoe when it is a Big Ten game.

- I have decided to get some Indians tickets for a game in September. My dad is a fan, and I am trying to be one too. At least a better fan. I thought that it would be fun to take the boys and dad to see an Indians game. I think I am going for the September 21st game against the Detroit Tigers. Hopfully, it will be a game with some play-off implications. Of course, the way they have been playing lately, the Indians might be watching the play-offs from their couches in their living rooms. Still, it should be a fun time.

- My mom wants to take us (my family) to a resort in Upper Sandusky for a couple days. She is thinking either Cedar Point or one of those water parks up there. I am a little on the fence about this one. We will go, of course, but it may be frustrating chasing the kids all over the place. I know, I am a stick in the mud. I just need to learn how to go with the flow and enjoy myself.

I need to get out more

I have been kind of bored with life lately. I think that my problem is lack of motivation and interests. Plus, it is hard to do stuff when you are either working or home with the kids while your wife is working. I know I could do things with the kids, but adult interests and kid interests aren't quite the same. Plus, most fun things cost money, which I have none. Given the chance, I'm not too sure what I would do with myself. Probably try to join a soccer team or something. I am pretty out of shape though, so that might be a bit too much. I should get out more to excercise, but I hate excercising in front of people. Maybe I am just making excuses for myself to be lazy. Probably. I just wish that there was something out that that I would enjoy and could take my kids. That is harder than it sounds when dealing with a 14, 6, and 3 year old. Do something the little kids like and the big kid gets bored. Do something for the big kid and the little kids get excluded. Maybe I just need to get out of the house. It's been two weeks since I've had a 'break' from being at home. I have gone to the store, sure (with all the kids in tow), but that is far from recreation. I think I am going to go play poker tonight. I should have joined a summer bowling league. That one night a week out keeps me sane during the fall and winter. Boy, I sound like a whiney bitch and a bad parent, don't I? I think I have just been cooped up too long. A night out will do me some good.

In the week of Eric

A few things going on this week:

1. We are painting the basement. I don't mind painting, but the basement has a bunch of weird corners and angles. We are going with a light green. I was hoping that one gallon and one coat would do, but it looks like I am going to need to get a second gallon. The hardest part was moving all of the stuff away from the walls. Also, manuvering around the kids' toys. Oh yeah, since I have maniac children, there were a few holes and dents in the wall. Really, those are the main reason for the painting. four real holes and about fifteen or twenty dents. Fun stuff.

2. In the Best Buy add, I saw a new Quake game for the Xbox that was being sold with a free copy of Call of Duty 3. I bought COD 4 a while ago and went through it pretty quickly. I want to get into the multi player part of the game. I play Halo 3 multi player ALOT, but wanted to try something new. Anyway, a free game is enough for me to buy another game. Fun stuff. Especially if the free game is something I am interested in. I love first person shooters.

3. As mentioned above, I have been playing COD 4. The game itself is WAY fun. You vs. terrorists. It was too short for my taste (I was done in about a week) but I am really trying to get into the multi player mode. It's quite a change from Halo 3. Instead of charging in, guns blazing, you need to be careful and sneaky. It is realistic in that, if you get shot, you get killed. Halo 3 allows for you to take some damage and still keep going. I have my work cut out for myself if I am to get good at this COD game. One negative is that, even if you are a newbie, you get tossed in with experienced players. I am level 1 playing against level 34 players. H3 was better in that level 1 players get matched up with level 1 players.

4. There are new pictures on my Flickr page. See the link to the right.

drawing a blank lately

Not many posts of late.....sorry about that. I guess I have been drawing a blank when it comes to what to write. I guess I can give you a general update:

- We took the kids to see Kung Fu Panda. It was really good. Some of it was silly Jack Black comedy that could have been left out, but the animation was great, the story was good, and the kids really liked it. I did too.

- BSG finally seems to be taking off this season. It had better. There are a lot of questions that need to be answered. The last Cylon, Earth, Starbuck, why did they turn Apollo into a whiney bitch, etc. Last episode was really good.

- Noah met his bio-dad this weekend. they had been chatting on the phone and via internet for some time now, but they had never met face to face. Mostly because the guy is a bit of an asshole. I won't get into it too much, but Noah said he had a good time visiting with his 'other family'. I am hoping that it makes Noah appreciate what he has here. I would like to think that a weekend in a trailer park would make him see just how hard Jessica and I work for him and the other kids. Not that there is anything wrong with trailer parks, but I think Noah was happy to be back in his own room. With three other kids, I have no idea where they would all have slept. We (Jessica and I) are never going to have a relationship with these people (I think that someone who is behind on child support and has never sent his child a birthday card or Christmas present is a scum bag) but if Noah wants to, there is really nothing we can do about it. I just don't understand why he would want to see them. Personally, I would be pissed at someone that has never really made any effort to be in my life. I just hope that these people don't expect invitations to summer cookouts and family gatherings.

Going to try Poker again

I am hosting another card game tonight. I've been on a run of horrible luck lately. I took a few weeks off to try to get my head straight. I was starting to sit at the table expecting to lose. That usually means that I am going to lose. The lasst few times I've played haven't been too bad. I've played well and only lost due to bad luck. Plus, I usually play to have fun more than to win. That means I am a little more wreckless. I am going to try to keep my head tonight and play smart. I need to start recouping some of my losses over the last few months.

Will they be Worth the Dough?

There are alot of movies Jessica and I want to see this summer. I love movies. I mostly buy DVDs, but a 42 inch TV just isn't as good as going to the big screen for the full theatrical experience. DVDs are a hel of a lot cheaper though. $15-$20 for a DVD makes more sense than $20 for the tickets, $10-$20 for drinks and snacks, and $30-$40 for a sitter. Plus, you can watch a DVD over and over, plus you can pause it to go pee. Anyway, here are the films we want to see, in no particular order:

Get Smart - Could this have been cast any better? I watched Get Smart re-runs as a kid, so this should be a cool blast from the past.

The Hulk - Jessica has a thing for Edward Norton. This will probably be delegated to a DVD watching.

The Happening - We love M Knight Shyamalan movies. They are always off the beaten path and pretty original. Some are scary, all are good.

Indiana Jones - This will be the first Indy film we have the chance to see in a theater. If Harrison Ford keeps this up, he may break a hip.

The Dark Knight - I hope this is at good as the last Batman flick. It looks like it is going to be great.

Hancock (maybe, probably a DVD pick) - Will Smith as a grumpy, moody superhero. It looks interesting. We'll see.

Of course, there is the new Harry Potter movie in November and Star Trek in December, but I am talking summer movies here. Did I miss any?

Busy Weekend

Saturday - Alydia's party was fun. She got several nice presents from family and friends. Her favorite seems to be clothes. She is SUCH a girl. Oh, and she got some little kid make up. Nothing whorey, just stuff like lip gloss and nail polish. I think Jessica likes playing dress up as much as Ally does. The food was good, the drink was good, everything was good.

Sunday - Since it was so nice out and I had my parents around to help out with everything, I was able to get a lot of yard work done. I started the day by putting in the veggie garden. YIPPIE!! So far, I have tomatoes, peppers, and cucumers going. I still have room for green beans and squash. I just LOVE summer time fresh veggies. Especially the tomatoes. they are SO much better than the store bought ones. I also cleaned out my garage. It ws getting pretty bad. Now that I have a shed and all of the gardening stuff is in it, I have alot more room in the garage. Plenty of room to park in there again. I think I am going to let Jessica park in there from now on so that, when it is snowing, she will be able to go to work without needing to scrape her car off first. Plus, her car is in better shape than mine now. I have scratched and dings all over my car.

I will try to put pictures from the party up n my Flickr page soon.

Almost Party Time

It's hard to believe that, in two days, my little Ally is going to be turning three. It's true when they say that kids grow up too fast. Sure, it will be nice when she is five and gets to go to school, but for now I am more than happy to have her be a little gorl for as long as possible. She is so sweet (most of the time). Tomorrow, we are having a little party. Friends are welcome to pop over. Unfortunately, most of my readers live hours away from me. Still, if anyone feels like popping in, we are kicking things off tomorrow at 4:00 (Saturday). We will have:

Tony Paco's hot dogs
Burgers
Chips
German Potatoe salad
fruit salad
veggie salad
sourkraut balls
dips
cake
drinks (of course)

I am guessing that there will be too much food, since that is how we Rhodes folk roll. YUMMY!!

Busy Day

Yesterday, Jessica took the day off so that we could do things to get ready for Alydia's party this Saturday. I was a busy fella. We went shopping in the morning and then I went to work on projects around the house. I mowed the grass, sprayed the grass with some weed killer, dug up the garden, and completed a border around the flower bed in the back yard. It took me a while and was bery tiring. Still, I always feel good when I get a lot of work done. You would think that I would try to get more things done, but it doesn't happen. We still need to clean the house and get the food ready, but mostly we should be ready to go for Saturday.

If anyone wants to come to the party Saturday, feel free. We are kicking off at 4:00.

Gas sucks

I went to get some gas Friday before having, yet another, bad week at playing cards. I have stopped filling my tank all the way. I drive a minivan, which isn't as bad as you think (I have a comfortable seat and plenty of hauling room in the back), but I have a 20 gallon tank. When gas prices are almost $4 per gallon, you can do the math. Since I don't do most of the driving anymore, I only put in about a half tank every time I fill up. Sure, I could get a full tank and go to the gas station less often, but I just have a problem with paying $80 for a tank of gas. In the meantime, gas and oil companies are still posting record earnings. Anyone else think that they are gauging the American people? If gas prices are really as high as we need to pay, and people are buying less gas because of the costs, how are these black souled companies still posting record gains? I'm just glad Jessica has a car that gets good mileage. Hopefully Bryan and Gretchen don't go broke paying for gas on their country wide trip.

Wii Fun

I have been playing Super Mario Galaxy lately. It is a load of fun. It is like the classic Super Mario games in that you have to save the Princess from Bowser by going through different levels and defeating different 'bosses' at the end. Actually, sometimes you need to complete difficult tasks. The setting is different though, in that you need to go through galaxies instead of the traditional levels. Each level is a different planet in the galaxy or the galaxy itself. Jessica is playing it too. She is irritated that I am further along in the game than she is. She is stuch on a level that you have to cross floors that move and have holes in it. The floor moves away from your goal, so you need to move fast to jump all the holes (different shaped holes). It is pretty rough.

I am also pretty good and Mario Carts Wii. I think I mentioned it before. I now have almost all of the races completed and have a gold cup on all but two levels. The hardest race for me to beat was the Rainbow Road. I kept falling off. I want to take my skills online and see how I measure up.

"I'll Ro-Sham-Bo you for it"

Ok, maybe I am stupid, but I didn't know what ro-sham-bo meant. I'm sure I have heard the term several times in my life, but the time that sticks out for me is when I watched South Park on DVD (season 1) a few weeks ago. There was a dispute between Cartman and Stan. Cartman suggested they 'ro-sham-bo for it'. When asked what that meant, cartman said that you take turns kicking each other in the nuts until someone gives up. The person that doesn't give up, wins. I thought it was hilarious because someone was getting kicked in the balls.

Last night I watched Criminal Minds and a police officer offered to 'ro-sham-bo' someone for the ugly job of telling a father that his daughter was found dead. I giggled a little (inappropriately due to the situation in the show) because I pictured two grown men kicking each other in the balls on network TV. Now, I know what ro-sham-bo really means. Wikipedia layed it down for me. Rock Paper Scissors would be the game. I don't know why I didn't make the connection when I saw that south Park episode. I guess I am a little dense.

Go read Betsy's blog. The link is on the right. Yet another highschool chum of mine had joined the bloggin' world. Soon we shall take over the internet! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-haaaaa!

More

I think I am getting a little irritated with BSG this season. What started out as a kick ass show with all sorts of action, drama, and great effects has turned into an almost boring show with little action and infused with heavy religious overtones. Baltar is turning into some sort of Christ figure, Roslin is turning into some sort of Moses, Starbuck is being painted as the anti-Christ and the show is more about One God verses many gods than it is Cylons verses humans. Last week's Cylon civil war was exciting, but little else is going on that I am interested in. I'm glad this is the last season. I REALLY hope that there are some exciting changes and revelations to come. The more they say that Starbuck is going to lead the fleet to distruction, the more I think Earth is going to be bad news for the fleet and the Cylons.

I watched an interesting show on NetFlix.com called Dexter. It is a Showtime show about a serial killer with morals. Like Morbius, the comic book vampire, Dexter only kills the wrong doers of the world. Sounds like it would be a weird show, but it is pretty good. Dexter actually works with the police as a CSI. He finds proof of killers and, if the system lets them go, he kills the bad guys. I really liked the show.

As promised, I put more pictures on my Flickr page. Lots of pictures of the kids, the puppy, and some flowers in our yard. There is a link on the right.

stuff

I went ahead and ordered tickets for this coming Ohio state football season. If nothing else, I can go, tailgate, and have some fun. I still hate the idea of paying $130 for two football tickets. I guess that's the price you pay when youare a fan or a perennial powerhouse. The Buckeyes are pre-season number one. It doesn't mean much, seeing as how no one has played yet, but with 18 returning starters, they should have a good team.

I played poker last night. I did pretty good for a while, but then the cards got cold for me. Still, I played for seven hours on my first buy in, so I guess it was an OK night. Some guys bought in several times. I wish I could have taken some of that money home with me, but that's how it seems to be going with me. I walked away when my ace high straight lost to quad kings. Damn. THAT's not something you expect. I did make a great play earlier in the night when I had pocket tens. Another play kept calling me as I bet and then he bet $40 after the last card came out. I read the hand right and made the call on his bluff. He was not happy. I was a little irritated when he said he didn't know if I was a good player that made a good call or a bad player that made a bad call. Whatever. I read him right and won a big pot.

I am going to try to upload some pictures to my Flickr page this weekend. Sorry for the delay.

JJ, I'm sorry

A while back I bashed the idea of Cloverfield. I think I said something about how the 'Godzilla thing' had been done before. SOOOOO SORRY JJ Abrahms! I am about half way though and I engrossed. SO intense! Gotta go!!!

OSU Tickets

Ohio State found a new way to insure sell outs and stick it to us OSU Alumni. There is a new way that they are distributing tickets to alumni. I guess it may be a little better in some ways. Instead of getting stuck with tickets based on how much you donate to the university, all alumni get put into a lottery for all the games. The tickets are then selected randomly. So, instead of getting the crappy first game like usual, I could get Michigan tickets. The down side is, the choice to NOT get tickets because of the crappy game is eliminated. If I get a crappy game, I am stuck with the tickets. I guess I am going to start getting tickets again. If they are for a crappy game, I know some people that I can tail gate with, get some beers into me, and still have a good time.

There was an OSU football "inside the practice" thing on ESPN. Exciting stuff. 18 out of the 22 returning starters are back for a final season together. One last shot at a National Title, I guess. Let's just hope that they don't make it to the game only to lose again to an SEC team. I don't think I could handle that. "We're #2! Again!!!" not a chant I want to be a part of.